Oil Search continues mobile Medical Clinics in earthquake affected areas in PNG

Oil Search continues to help the sick and injured, six weeks after the devastating earthquake on February 26th in Papua New Guinea .

The Company’s medics have again covered Yalanda, Kekero, Huiya, Dodomona and Walagu villages attending to over two hundred sick men, women and children.

Working in makeshift aid posts, the team treated patients with muscular pains, diarrhoea and respiratory infections.

“Crowded conditions in care centres can lead to an outbreak of diseases and it’s important we are treating these mild cases and decreasing the risks,” said Dr Robert Imambu, Oil Search Medical Officer.

The mobile clinics also ensure roll out of vaccination for five–year-old children who have not been immunised since 2017 to prevent gastrointestinal diseases, tuberculosis and malnutrition.

Oil Search Foundation will support an immunisation program to the affected areas over the next month recognising the risks in the outbreak of diseases such as whooping cough and measles among the young population in crowded conditions.

Serious cases identified in the villages were medivacked to Oil Search Moro Medical Clinic where they were treated and monitored before being repatriated back to their respective villages.

Oil Search is focused on playing its role in supporting the communities, providing urgently needed help in terms of medical support and the mobile clinics will continue to assist the people in the affected areas.

These efforts are being coordinated by Oil Search and its Foundation staff.

“We can't do it all but we are doing our bit in helping the people recover from this disaster,” Oil Search Managing Director Peter Botten said.